Airlines to Embrace Personalized Product Sales

Late last year, the IATA Global Passenger and Finance Symposium in Chicago highlighted the growing importance of "bid and order management" in the airline industry. This technological advancement is gaining momentum, promising to transform how airlines offer and sell their products.

"Offer and order management" is an emerging method that draws inspiration from modern retail practices. This approach allows airlines to create and distribute personalized offers to travelers, enhancing the customer experience. Although well-known within the airline industry, it remains relatively unfamiliar to many OTAs, tour operators, and retail travel agencies.

This new system is significant for both distributors and sellers of airline products. According to industry experts, adopting this approach could streamline the booking process, making it more efficient and user-friendly. For example, Vibe, a booking technology provider, believes that this could lead to new partnerships and opportunities for B2C websites not currently involved in travel sales.

Moreover, Trava's Maxim Sevastianov points out that offer and order management could solve longstanding issues with personalized services. Airlines often struggle to gather useful information on travelers' preferences, which hinders their ability to offer tailored products. This new approach, driven by retail principles, could unlock new ancillary revenue streams and improve customer satisfaction.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is also expected to play a crucial role in this transition. Sergio Sánchez, CIO of PriceTravel, predicts that AI will enable complete transparency for travelers, consolidating information from multiple booking channels. This technological advancement could become a reality by 2024, significantly improving the travel experience.